Saudi Arabia is allocating fewer barrels of crude for export next month and at a level below current demand, emphasising the effort by global producers to reduce surplus inventories. In a rare statement, the Ministry of Energy on Monday said contracted demand for Saudi crude for November was 7.7m barrels a day, but the kingdom has assigned just 7.2m b/d for export. The disclosure of Saudi Arabia’s monthly allocations emphasises a new focus on foreign sales, alongside production, that Riyadh deems vital to the effort by global producers to reduce surplus inventories. The remarks also underline how the Opec kingpin, and world’s top oil exporter, is doubling down on its pledge to curb supplies and reduce excess global stockpiles that have kept a ceiling on prices. “It is very interesting they are now trying to communicate to the market about exports,” said Olivier Jakob at consultancy Petromatrix. “They have gone the extra step of putting out numbers on this, which is the first I’ve ever seen.”